Sales

In this week’s BuilderRadio podcast we spend some time with Plattsburgh Housing Outlet’s Michelle LaBounty. Discover the true value of hosting Home Buyer Seminars in order to really educate potential clients on everything to expect when building a new home.

Each year Michelle holds a total of five friendly, no-pressure, meetings for curious homebuyers interested in gaining a true understanding of the process. Learn how these events are crucial in building trust with your prospects.

What if you connected on a deeper level with every buyer that comes through the door – that your prospects were riveted to your every word as you described the benefits of your home and how it meets their every need? And what if you were able to close buyers more quickly with less negotiation, and your buyers were always delighted with you and their purchase? Listen to Podcast

That’s the question Elliot Eisenberg answers on this weeks’ Selling More Homes Podcast.

Dr. Elliot spent several years as an economist for the National Association of Home Builders, so he has intimate knowledge of how economic factors affect new home starts and sales. Listen to his insights on what to watch for in 2016 in this week’s program.

Notes from the interview with Dr. Elliot Eisenberg:

The housing recovery is progressing, and the near future looks positive for new home sales. 2016 hasn’t been – and probably won’t be – the boom year that some predicted, but the housing market, like the rest of the economy, is slowing gaining steam.

Large tract builders with land supplies are seeing the most growth now as lot prices continue to climb, making it more difficult for smaller builders to find and acquire affordable home sites. Rising land prices also mean higher new home prices, leaving new families struggling to find affordable housing.

While personal and mortgage credit is loosening slightly, the biggest obstacle is still the lack of financing for land acquisition, development and construction.

Small builders can compete by going where the larger builders aren’t and building what they can’t, such as building on infill lots; tear-downs; and focusing on larger custom homes.

The greatest growth opportunity for builders lies in courting Millennial buyers – younger buyers in their 20s and 30s. In the next decade they will be entering the market by the millions. Learn now what they want and how to deliver it, and you’ll carve out a profitable niche for the foreseeable future.

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Elliot Eisenberg, Ph.D. is a nationally acclaimed economist and public speaker specializing in making the arcana and minutia of economics fun, relevant and educational. He earned a B.A. in economics with first class honors from McGill University in Montreal, as well as a Masters and Ph.D. in public administration from Syracuse University. Eisenberg, a former Senior Economist with the National Association of Home Builders in Washington, D.C., is the creator of the multifamily stock index. Contact Dr. Eisenberg at Econ70.com.

Following up with clients quickly and consistently, in the right way and with the right message, can catapult a sales career into the stratosphere. It’s the first place every salesperson should give attention to increase your closing rate and your income.

Why do we say that? The facts are in, and as an industry, we are dismal at following up. In fact, nearly one half of all new home buyers that come into a sales center never get a single follow up call – and less that 20% will get contacted more than three times after the initial visit.

With those number looming over us, you can see why following up can make a big difference for you. So, Amy O’Connor, a sales coach for Shore Consulting, offers these 5 tips to help you keep in touch with your buyers:

Step 1: Do it.
What often holds us back are the scripts we play in our mind – the stories we tell ourselves. “They’re probably not really interested anyway” “I don’t want to seem pushy.” Stop talking yourself out of making the next call and just do it!

Remember: Follow up is something we do for people, not to them!

Step 2: Do it Faster.
According to InsideSales.com, 50 percent of sales (from following-up) are made by the first sales person to contact the prospect. So, how soon should you make the call? Four Hours after their visit!

It’s easy if you set up the call while your still with the prospect. Say something like:

“Karen, just one more thing before you go. I’ve been doing this for awhile, and I know that as soon as people leave questions start to come up. I’d hate for any unanswered questions to keep you up tonight. How about I give you a quick call around 6:00 just to check in and see if there’s anything that has come up between now and then that I can answer for you. Sound good?”

Step 3: Make it Personal.
Amy recommends taking pictures of the features the prospects likes during the model tour and sending these to them. Look back at your notes and reference the things they said, questions they asked and things they responded positively to. Then, use these as the basis for your follow up so it’s always personal and relevant to the prospect.

Step 4: Grab their attention.
We all get way too many emails that we’re not interested in. But, when was the last time you receive a personal video email or text? Free apps like Joya, Bomb Bomb, or Eyejet let you be creative and easily record a quick video that you can email to them. Now THAT will get some attention!

Step 5: Be Consistent.
The formula that Shore Consulting uses to define when buyers will take action is:

CURRENT DISSATISFACTION X FUTURE PROMES >

COST + FEAR

In other words, when they feel that their current pain and the rewards for taking action outweigh their fear and the cost involved, that’s when they move forward and make a change.

By consistently being there for them, rendering personal service and keeping them moving forward, you’ll help your customers get past their fear and doubt and move forward to improve their lives by buying your home.

Sales professionals are always on the hunt for new closing techniques. After all, closing sales is the aim of everything we do. Increasing our closing ration should be among the highest priorities of every sales person. Leah Turner, a sales coach with Melinda Brody & Company, shares these seven tips to close more sales: Listen to Podcast

Your company’s brand is what people think when they hear the name or see your sign. Your personal brand is what people think and say about you. People buy from people they like and trust, so your personal brand is really as or more important than that of the company because if they don’t connect with you, they will put on the brakes and look elsewhere. Listen to Podcast

Back in the 1980s, when I was a young and struggling custom builder in the Louisville, KY area, I had a framing crew that would consistently chide me every time I’d come on the job site. “Why don’t you pick up a hammer and do some real work,” they’d quip. I finally sat them down and explained a truth that every business owner has come to learn: Nobody build it until somebody sells it.

The truth is that I began my career swinging a hammer. And that was easy compared to sales. Sales Professionals spend every minute of every day countering objections, digging for the “why” that will motivate their buyers, or, like this week’s guest recounts, facing rejection.

Ralph Williams began his career knocking on doors to get real estate listings. Today, he leads a team at Sales Solve Everything, a sales training and coaching school for New Home Sales Professionals located in Dallas, TX. In this interview, Ralph explains how he had to overcome rejection to get his dream job, and the characteristics he believes every Sales Professional must possess or acquire to excel, including intense desire, a hunger for knowledge, and perseverance.

As to attitude, Ralph illustrates how he views his job – and the attitude every Sales Professional should cultivate – as follows:

“You know those roller coasters that you stand in line for and wait and the excitement builds as you watch the line inch forward person by person? You know that feeling you get when you finally get to the front of line and you choose your seat and you’re waiting to take off? And finally the three seconds after the roller coaster takes off at {what seems like} G-Force speed… it’s that catch your breath, brace yourself, try not to scream, wipe the happy tears from your eye balls- RUSH you get and then you realize THIS IS JUST THE BEGINNING of the ride. THAT is how every day feels getting to do what we do.”

If you’re embarrassed (or worse, ashamed) of being in sales, then it’s time to bail out – you can’t be effective. However, if you view sales as a noble career – and yourself as a beacon of hope for your clients, then congratulations, you belong here.Listen to Podcast